Dust Mites
by magical marker
Summary: Peatrice has pretty much spent her life daydreaming in the emptiest corner of the Bazaar. Nothing has ever impressed her. She never thought she'd see more than a wimpy wannabe knight in the Item Check's only customer, though. Could he be something more?


Note: This is a really quick rough beginning to my little story. I just thought the little side stuff with Peatrice would be fun to write about, like how her perspective on Link changes. I find it's really funny, actually, and cute xD But her life! It makes me depressed to just write about it, haha. By the way, please no shipping wars. This isn't supposed to be serious, just a bit of fun :)

Every day at the Skyloft Bazaar there sat a dreary girl named Peatrice, dutifully tending the Item Check and undoubtedly bored out of her mind. Truthfully it was the only store in the venue that never saw much business.

_Really, who would even bother to leave their junk behind this counter when their own home is most likely less than a couple hundred feet away? _She often wondered to herself.

Even the creepy saucer-eyed fortune teller across the aisle was guaranteed to see more rupees in a week than Peatrice ever would in a month's time. Nevertheless, she'd start each morning the same: wake up, eat whatever her father had stocked the pantry with (more often than not it was bamboo shoots), comb her blond hair back into pigtails (so it wouldn't get in the way of her "work"), throw on the usual clothes tucked in her chest of drawers, tie her bonnet without even bothering to look in the mirror (for fear of disappointment) and then walk a few paces to her corner of the bazaar. Sometimes she'd take a break halfway through her day and buy a crock of soup from Piper, but that depended on whether or not she could get the lady to stop adding spices to the broth and insisting it would be the last dash of salt or whatever (it almost never was). And then she'd go back to watching the dust mites fall from the spinning lights. Yes, every day it was the same. Same noises, same smells, and the same variety of colors that, though vibrant, never managed to excite her. There was Gondo's incessant hammering at the scrap shop, the baby's sporadic wailing at the potion brewery, and of course the chatter of the stream of shoppers. In order to keep her sanity, Peatrice would often spend her time daydreaming as she stared at the wall opposite her. Sometimes it would be about having a good circle of girl friends or taking a trip to Fun Fun Island or some such, but almost every day she would find herself envisioning the perfect boy to sweep her off her feet. Oh, the bliss and excitement of a possible romance! It was thoughts like these that nearly made her day job bearable. When the time came to close up shop, however, she'd have to lock the cabinets and face reality: the same exact thing would await her the following day.

Perhaps that was why the Wing Ceremony seemed so pleasant to her one morning. All her childhood she had never truly understood the meaning of it all, but she did know that it was very fun to watch those handsome older boys swoop and swerve on the skies. But this year she had heard it slip from Parrow that a very special contender would brave the skies in the hopes of reaching knighthood. Apparently some would-be academy student was in possession of a very special Loftwing, one with crimson feathers. Peatrice could remember the few times she had seen this magnificent bird gliding in the air, and she always considered it a treat to see such a pretty sight.

_Might as well go see how it goes. It's not like I'll be getting any business anyway, since everyone will be watching the ceremony_, she figured.

She made her way to the plaza to join everyone else, but she quickly realized something was amiss. Everyone was gathered, but there wasn't a single rider in the air.

"It's that boy with the red Loftwing," she heard Orielle say. "Link. Apparently his bird is missing!"

"The poor thing! Do you think the headmaster will start without him? My Pipit knows Link, and he's a good boy, you know! It'd be a shame if he couldn't compete," said Mallara in a worried tone.

_Well, this is a bust. Might as well have stayed in the shop. _Peatrice sighed. She looked at the line of young men tending to their Loftwings. They didn't look very nervous. She easily identified Groose, with his big pompadour cut and even bigger ego, but the names of his cronies escaped her. It didn't look like the race would be very interesting, so she retired to the Item Check for some peace and quiet, and perhaps a bit more daydreaming…

A day or two passed without incident, as per the usual. Peatrice didn't expect anything that morning, but of course she never saw **him **coming.

The young man walked into the bazaar in a rather unremarkable fashion. The only peculiar aspect of him was that he wore a green variation of the traditional knight garb, which made him stick out. _So that's what they're wearing this year_, she noted. Why was a knight of Skyloft visiting the Bazaar anyway? They were supposed to be out and about, chasing clouds and rescuing clumsy idiots, weren't they?

_Whatever_. _I'll bet he's coming here to ask what they all ask. "And what do you sell here? Space? Why would I need storage space? I have a shed that already serves the very same purpose, girl!"_ Then they'd be off on their way, shaking their head in wonder or amusement. Yeah, yeah, same old same old.

When the boy came closer she got a closer look and studied him closely, though she made sure to do so as covertly as possible. He had strong, thick, arched eyebrows that almost distracted her from his bright blue eyes, which themselves looked determined and distant at the same time. His dark blond hair was a bit tousled and his bangs were parted to his right. He didn't look it, but he was probably pretty bulky under that forest green tunic. Weren't knights supposed to be? Peatrice decided he wasn't exactly scrawny, but he wasn't a bulging mass of muscle either. He actually looked kind of dopey. _Great, what does he want?_ she wondered silently.

Before launching into the usual routine she let out a long sigh to show she wasn't interested in his attention and quickly explained the check-in process and item-holding policies. He didn't talk much, and his voice was soft when he did, so she reasoned that he was either stupid or shy. While he didn't place an item in storage (no surprises there), he did seem thoughtful and at least partly interested in the idea of her humble little shop.

_Meh. Probably won't be seeing him again_, she thought as she watched him plod off to see the blacksmith.

That night her father came home late, just before sundown.

"Sheesh, Dad, one of these days you're gonna forget to come home before nightfall and you'll be stranded on that little island of yours. Is that what you want?" she said, setting out a plate of steamed bamboo for him.

"I'm only late because I've been so wrapped up in toning these arms of mine, my little rainbow," he replied sweetly. _Yeah, your belly could use more toning right now_.

"Besides," her Dad continued, "There's a young fellow that dropped by today and got me in the mood for even more intense training. Can't let these fresh young knights think I, the great Peater, have lost my stuff. I've got a reputation you know."

"Oh yes, I forgot," Peatrice quipped. Her father gave her a stern look before continuing.

"Well, this lad went by the name of Link, and he almost gave me a run for my money. Didn't expect a boy with such a stubby sword to nearly outshine me…But I suspect I'll be seeing him soon. He's that young man who won the race at this past Wing Ceremony, you know. Gaepora seems to expect great things from him."

"Yeah? What's so great about him?" Peatrice asked nonchalantly. She flicked a bit of dust from her now-empty plate.

"Well, he's got that crimson Loftwing, don't you know? He doesn't look like much, and he's rather small for a knight, but I hear he's a promising one."

Peatrice slowly turned to her father, a look of wonder on her face. "Oh. Does he have blond hair? Blue eyes?"

"Yes, that's the one," her father said good-naturedly. Suddenly his face turned dark and serious. "Why? He hasn't been bothering you, or coming on to you has he?"

Peatrice rolled her eyes and whined. "Daaaad, stop that. No, he hasn't. I just saw him at the Bazaar today, that's all. The end. He _does_ look like a wimpy sort of knight if you ask me, though. Nothing like Groose the fluffed-up, puffed-up goon."

"Hmmmm," her Dad said, reverting back to his normal self. "Well, you make sure to tell me if he bothers you. Anyone interested in my lovely daughter needs to go through me first."

"Whatever, Dad. I'm going to bed, if you care." She walked to her small bed and kicked off her slippers. _He doesn't have to get all worked-up. That Link boy probably won't come back. They never really do, anyway_. She went to sleep quickly, and dreamed of a handsome prince of her own. A strong, muscular one.


End file.
